Author's notes: Getting close to the end. Thanks to those of your reading this and especially those reviewing it!
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David grabbed at the dash to brace himself as the vehicle bounced over the wash boarded roadway. "Damn, doesn't the county believe in maintenance this far in the boonies?" He had arrived from the airport just in time to head out with the team going to check on the cabin.
"This is a private road," Agent Bill Harrison smiled and shook his head at the other agent. "I know that off-roading in L.A. must be pulling your SUV onto the lawn when you are washing it, but out here," he paused for effect. "This is a good road."
"Funny. Can you try to hit a few more of those really deep ones? I love the feel of the roof against my head."
"How much further Bill?" Megan spoke up from the back seat.
"I'm guessing about two or three miles. The deputy in the car ahead of us has actually been out to this cabin before. I guess him and Brandon Thomas went to school together and they were friends then."
Turning to Megan, David grimaced as they hit another bump. "How is Don doing?"
"From what I can tell he did catch a nap while waiting for both of us to get to town. I know he's worried and I'm sure he's feeling guilty about sending Colby undercover on this."
"Colby can take care of himself." David spoke confidently about his partner.
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Colby had to stop again. He hated feeling this weak, it wasn't who he was. He looked at the ground and was tempted to sit down and rest for a moment. He shook his head to clear his vision, the last 10 minutes he had noticed that his focus had been narrowing. Pushing off again he continued on with dogged determination. He had to give Rachel a chance to get away.
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Amita opened her office door and crossed to her desk. Plugging in her laptop, she pulled out her chair and sat down. She had sent what little additional information she had gleaned to Don last night. She had then gone home and caught a few hours of sleep. Her email chirped. There was nothing of importance. Looking at her cell phone she thought about calling Don. She didn't want to seem intrusive and if he needed any more information from her he would certainly call.
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Don sat silently in the Sheriff's truck as it maneuvered around the worst of the bumps and potholes that dotted the roadway. They were close to the cabin and hopefully this would be over. It had been several long days and truth be told, Don was beginning to lose hope. Charlie would be able to tell him statistically what the likelihood would be. Pinching the bridge of his nose, Don hoped that this would be the time that the numbers would lie.
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Rachel stopped and took the cap off the bottle and drained the last of the water. She felt bad that she hadn't given it to Colby, but in her quick departure she hadn't even thought about it. Besides, he would have insisted that she take it. After several days Rachel felt that she knew him well enough to know what he would have done. She smiled slightly at the image of Colby that came to her mind; the gallant knight.
Taking a deep breath, she dropped the bottle, promising to herself that littering couldn't be helped. The lake was much closer and hopefully she would be there soon.
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The agents and police swarmed out of the vehicles and within moments the interior of the cabin had been cleared. No one was there.
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He had stopped again. It had only been minutes since the last time he stopped and he wasn't sure if he was going to have the stamina to keep going. Colby scanned the area looking for anything that would help to provide him with some cover. Slowly making his way over to a downed tree he eased his aching body down to the ground. He leaned his head back and closed his eyes.
Colby had dozed off when he heard voices talking. He listened for a moment, trying to identify them. He was still hoping that it would be the good guys when a voice interrupted his thoughts.
"Looks like we've got one for the Prophet."
Arms grabbed him and roughly pulled him to his feet. "Long time no see." Colby didn't want to give them the satisfaction of seeing his disappointment.
"Lets get him back to the cabin. I'm sure the Prophet would like to dispense God's wrath."
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There were several small cabins near the edge of the lake. There was no answer as she pounded on the door of the first one. At the second, she followed the sound of loud rock and roll music blaring from a radio. She rounded the corner and surprised a young couple keeping watch over a smoking grill.
"My name is Rachel Willons and I'm a FBI agent, I need to borrow a phone."
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The deputy looked embarrassed. "I thought he would have been here. We always came up here to get away from things."
Don looked around at the simple cabin, a ladder led up to an enclosed loft area. There were signs that people had been around. Several granola bar wrappers littered the floor and chairs were pushed away from the table. Outside, tire tracks were visible in the damp earth close to the house. He knew that they had been here, felt it in his gut, but it seemed that Stone was staying one step ahead if them. "Any other place where they might have gone"
"This is the only place. His Dad's ranch isn't that big." The young man suddenly looked up excitedly. "His uncle!"
Narrowing his eyes slightly, Don looked questioningly at the deputy. "What about his uncle?"
"His uncle owned a fishing camp over by Lake Elwell. It was on the opposite side from the Tiber Dam. It hasn't been open since his uncle died a couple of years ago. Everything is tied up in court; in-fighting with the beneficiaries."
"Let's go, we've got nothing to lose." Don turned and looked Megan and David. "Contract a crew to get here and see if we can tie Rachel and Colby to this place." He looked at the deputy. "Get on the phone; I want road blocks up all around this county. I'm not going to let the Prophet slip through my fingers again."
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"You cheated." Colby commented as they came out on a rutted trail and headed towards an older Jeep. Another disciple climbed out from behind the wheel and watched them approach. "I would think God would want you to be a little more sporting."
"Shut up and get in back." The Disciple on his left pushed him firmly on the back to propel him towards the vehicle.
The pain flared across his back and it caused Colby to stumble. Falling, he painfully caught himself. He remained on all fours, trying to catch his breath. A foot connected with his already tender ribs and a cry slipped from his lips as he hit the ground fully. He rolled into a fetal position to protect himself in case of additional blows.
"Knock it off Bob," one of the men admonished. "Let's get him back. I'm starting to get a bad feeling about this whole incident." He reached down and offered Colby a hand up.
Standing shakily, Colby climbed into the Jeep and angled his body to keep the seat away from his back. He decided to keep his mouth shut during the ride back to wherever. He would probably need all of his strength for what was coming.
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"Unit Four, this is Liberty County Dispatch."
"Go ahead dispatch." The deputy driving spoke into the handset.
"I've got a call coming in from a woman who says her name is Rachel Willons."
Don looked at the deputy and nodded his head; afraid that this would be some cruel hoax.
"Put her through Dispatch." The deputy handed it over to Don.
"Hello? My name is Rachel Willons and I'm an agent with the California FBI. I was kidnapped by the Prophet Arner Stone." The voice on the other end sounded very composed, but haggard.
"This is Don Eppes, are you alright Ms. Willons?"
"I am, but another agent Colby Granger is still out there."
Don spoke quickly, "Where?"
"We escaped from the Prophet and Colby went a different way to throw them off the trail. He's injured."
"How badly?" Don was afraid to ask.
"He sustained a bad beating several days ago, plus earlier today he was whipped. I'm real worried about him."
"Where are you right now Agent Willons?" He could hear her pull the phone away and speak to someone.
"Ted and Shelly Winterhoff's. They live on Blake Ridge."
Don looked questioningly towards the deputy. The deputy mouthed "on the way". "Ok. We should be there in," He looked at the deputy again. "Twenty minutes. Don't go anywhere."
Signing off, Don gave instructions to the deputy, who got back on the radio to dispatch. Then Don picked up his cell phone and call the other vehicle to let David and Megan know the news.
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The Jeep pulled into the clearing near a two-story cabin. The area surrounding it was overgrown with weeds and had a general look of disuse. The driver pulled up to the cabin and shut off the vehicle. They exited and pulled Colby from the back. Having difficulty maintaining his balance, they steered him to the front door. Hurrying inside, the door was shut behind them and the two men holding him looked at one another; as if trying to decide what to do with the man.
"Where is Rachel!" The voice of the Prophet thundered from the top of the stairs as he descended.
"We haven't found her yet, but we did catch him." The disciple that had been driving spoke up. "We thought we would bring him back here and go look for her again."
Striding over to where the two men held the rapidly weakening agent, Stone slapped Colby across the face. "You will die a slow and painful death." Stone commanded the men holding Colby "Take him into the other room and make sure he isn't going to go anywhere."
Moments later they returned and following Stone's bidding, they left to resume the search for the missing woman.
A few minutes later Stone crossed to the other room and pulled up a chair near the now bound man. "I still haven't figured out how I'm going to kill you yet. If you tell me what I want to know, maybe I'll make it quick."
"I've got nothing to tell you Stone." Colby's voice was quiet and low.
Suddenly, Stone's cell phone rang. "Since you're not going anywhere, I don't think you mind if I take this." Stone replied sarcastically.
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The caravan of police and FBI vehicles had arrived at the Winterhoff's. Don had instructed several of the other vehicles to continue on to the other location and he would stop and pick up the know free agent. Shortly after pulling in, Rachel had exited the house and had climbed into the vehicle.
Don held out his hand, "Don Eppes. I'm Colby's boss."
"Colby told me his team would find us."
"We were closing in when you gave us a call. I've got the rest of the team headed up to the property owned by one of the disciple's family members. We think that's where they were holding you."
"But Colby's not there. I went towards the lake and he went another direction to throw them off the trail."
Don nodded, "You told us. But we want to get a hold of Stone and we will have plenty of manpower out searching for Colby." A ringing interrupted Don. "Hold on a minute." He opened his phone. "Eppes. You did?" His face was unreadable. "How far away? Did they admit to anything?" He closed his eyes momentarily, thinking, and then opened them. "Ok, head to the property, but don't approach it. What? Are you sure?"
The look on Don's face turned to anger. "Shit! Ok, change of plans. Get up there and make sure he knows you're there and don't let him get away."
Rachel watched the anxiety running through the agent's face. "What happened?"
"They stopped a Jeep. There were four men in it and they were disciples. One of them had been talking on a cell phone and my agents are sure it was Stone that was called. I've got them heading up there right now. It sounds like they had found Colby and had taken him back to Stone."
"Stone will be out of control. I don't doubt he will be mad enough to kill Colby." Rachel's face blanched.
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Stone closed the connection and looked down at the bound and bleeding man before him. "It seems as if we are going to have a little company." He went to the other room and grabbed a kerosene lamp from the table. Returning with it he smiled at Colby and then threw the lamp against the far wall. Pulling out a match he lit it and tossed it towards the broken lamp. The kerosene ignited and the fire began to race along the path that the liquid had made. "You shall be consumed by the fire. My God help your soul."
Stone turned and walked out of the room and moments later the back door slammed shut.
Colby looked at the flames now starting to travel up the pine boards that made up the walls of the cabin. With his hands and feet tied, all he could do is to watch the flames grow.